Report: Irish Booster Paid Off Agent

A former Notre Dame booster who was sentenced to four years in prison for embezzling $1.2 million from her employer told school officials she gave an ex-player $5,000 to pay off a sports agent who threatened to expose their contact, ESPN reported Tuesday.

The network also reported that Kimberly Dunbar told school officials she paid the way for family members of several former players to attend games.

Notre Dame spokesman John Heisler would not discuss details of the latest revelations, but he told The Associated Press the school had forwarded the new information to the NCAA for review.

"This is part of the information we've reported to the NCAA," Heisler said. "We've told the NCAA from the beginning at any point that we learned anything we would keep them apprised of this."

Dunbar, 29, who was sentenced Monday, said she used some of the money embezzled from her former employer to buy gifts, trips and jewelry for at least a dozen current and former Irish players.

The gifts included a trip to a Chicago Bulls game that included five current Notre Dame players. The NCAA cleared them of any wrongdoing after they donated the price of their tickets to charity.

Athletic director Mike Wadsworth said Monday the school interviewed Dunbar twice in the past month and found no new evidence of possible violations by current players.

But the school still faces possible sanctions for lack of institutional control. Wadsworth said the school had uncovered two possible rules violations before interviewing Dunbar and also has forwarded that information to the NCAA. The NCAA has not indicated when it will issue a ruling on possible violations, he said.

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